Monday, January 17, 2011

KYIV, January 14, 2011 (UKRINFORM). 90% of arms and military equipment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are morally and physically obsolete. This was stated by the chief inspector of the Ministry of Defense, Valery Frolov, in an interview with The Army of Ukraine magazine. He noted that over 19 years of independence the armed forces have put into operational service only 93 new and upgraded models of weapons and military technology, created by domestic enterprises of the military-industrial complex. The chief military inspector said that it is a minor figure. "At the same time, the quantitative figure of the total latest and upgraded weapons and military technology today does not exceed 10% and the remaining 90% are obsolete and outdated, which requires the purchase of new or upgrading old models," Frolov stressed. In addition, he said, "there is reason to assert that not all the nomenclature of weapons and military technology, which is needed for the Armed Forces of Ukraine, can be now produced by enterprises of domestic military-industrial complex". "Also it can not but alarm that 90-95% of the total production at the enterprises of domestic military-industrial complex is exported. Of course, the foreign exchange revenue from the sale of Ukrainian weapons is essential. Not refuting this position, however, we have to note: the current critical state of the Ukrainian weapons and military technology requires quite a different concentration of main efforts of the national defense industry - on its rearmament," Frolov underscored.http://www.ukrinform.ua/eng/order/?id=210079